Ken Gottlieb
The Chronicle-Telegram
Elyria Catholic girls basketball coach Pat Higley is out of a job, and he’s not sure why.
Higley says he unexpectedly got a phone call Monday from EC athletic director Barb Salata telling him his services were no longer needed.
“I’m really at a loss,” Higley said Friday night. “I still haven’t gotten an answer.
“She said something to the effect that I didn’t embody the EC mission statement. I tried to get to the bottom of it, but she just said they were going in a different direction.”
Salata said the move was made because of “philosophical differences.”
She declined to say what the differences were, but said they had to do with basketball, not off-the-court matters.
“We just made the decision that we needed to go in a different direction,” she said. “It had nothing to with wins and losses.”
The school hopes to name a new coach by the start of the school year, Salata said.
Higley, a 1989 Elyria Catholic graduate, led the Panthers for three years, compiling a 17-45 record. But he was coming off his best season, with an 11-10 record.
“We’ve been doing conditioning drills three days a week since April,” Higley said. “(The team is) going to be outstanding.
“Just last Thursday she (Salata) asked me to head a committee that was coordinating the activities of the school’s coaches. Four days later I was let go.”
Higley said some players and parents tried to change Salata’s mind, but to no avail.
“I’ve always dreamed about coaching at EC,” he said. “This was going to be my last coaching job.”
Now Higley, who works in operations for the Vermilion school district, says he’s thinking about pursuing other coaching jobs, but isn’t sure he will.
Contact Ken Gottlieb at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

Ex-Elyria boys coach John Srnis up for Amherst job

Former Elyria High boys basketball coach John Srnis is close to being named boys coach at Amherst.
Amherst athletic director Bill Miller said Friday that Srnis — who was head coach at Elyria from 1997-2005 — has been recommended to succeed Phil Schmook, who left to become head coach at Maple Heights. The Amherst school board will consider Srnis’ appointment at a meeting next month.
Miller said there were two key factors in the choice of Srnis, an Amherst graduate.
“No. 1 was his head coaching experience at a large school and the fact he was successful there,” Miller said.
“It was also important to think about what his longevity at Amherst would be. We’re looking for stability.”
Attempts to reach Srnis on Friday night were unsuccessful.
Srnis stepped down from the Elyria coaching job in 2005 to have more time for his three sons’ sports activities.
He had a 94-80 record in eight seasons at Elyria, including 60-28 in his final four years.

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